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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. march — music
  3. cap — of ice
  4. march — the month
  5. march — the month
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. object — to protest
  10. content — happy
  11. object — an aim
  12. cap — a lid
  13. race — a contest
  14. race — the arms race
  15. mark — a grade
  16. object — a thing
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. rest — what's left
  19. rest — a break
  20. content — the amount
  21. mark — a trace
  22. cap — a hat
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. race — humankind

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com